When observing a comet please try to forget how bright you think the comet
should be, what it was when you last viewed it, what other observers think
it is or what the ephemeris says it should be.

The equations for the light curves of comets that are currently visible
use only the raw observations and should give a reasonable prediction for
the current brightness. If the comet has not yet been observed or has
gone from view a correction for aperture is included, so that telescopic
observers should expect the comet to be fainter than given by the equation.
The correction is about 0.033 per centimetre. Values for the r parameter
given in square brackets [ ] are assumed. The form of the light curve is
either the standard m = H0 + 5 log d + K0 log r or the linear brightening
m = H0 + 5 log d + L0 abs(t - T + D0) where T is the date of perihelion,
t the present and D0 an offset, if L0 is +ve the comet brightens towards
perihelion and if D0 is +ve the comet is brightest prior to perihelion.

Observations of individual comets are given below, but if you want to
view the latest observations of all comets, here
are the ones I've received recently in TA format (note that observations
received in ICQ format are in the individual files only).
All observation lists are given in ICQ format.

Full details of recently discovered objects will not appear until they are
available on the CBAT web pages, which is usually a fortnight after the
publication of the IAUC.

Orbital calculations by Maik Meyer tend to confirm the identity of the object
with D/1783 W1. Nakano has computed a linked orbit:

If the comet has made 33 revolutions from 1783 to 2003, this provides a
good linkage between D/1783 W1 and P/2003 A1.
Because the period of the comet is not certain, the number of
revolutions of the comet could be between 37 and 29. Furthermore, in
the case of 33
revolutions, the comet made close approaches to Jupiter: on 1923 9 16.0
to 0.35 AU, on 1864 6 1.5 to 0.57 AU, and on 1852 7 3.0 to 0.98 AU with an
approach to 0.67 AU on 1793 4 7.5. The closest approach to the earth
during this time was at the appearance of 1783.

An apparently asteroidal LINEAR object discovered on January 5.07
with m2 18.4), posted on the NEO Confirmation Page, has been found to be
diffuse by CCD observers elsewhere, including at Haleakala (1.2-m
reflector, with K. Lawrence reporting the object as slightly
diffuse on NEAT images taken on Jan. 7.3 UT, and again somewhat
diffuse on Jan. 8.3), at Klet (where M. Tichy found a coma diameter
of 8" on images taken on Jan. 8.7 with the 1.06-m KLENOT reflector),
and at Ondrejov (where P. Pravec found a faint, small coma that was
"marginally apparent", on images taken close to the moon on Jan.
8.8 with the 0.65-m f/3.6 reflector).
The object is likely
of short period, with the angular orbital elements quite similar to
those of D/1783 W1. [IAUC 8044, 2003 January 8]

The name was finally confirmed in 2004 November.

The IAU Committee on Small Bodies Nomenclature has decided to
name three comets as follows: C/1996 R3 (Lagerkvist), P/2003 A1
(LINEAR), P/2004 A1 (LONEOS). [IAUC 8430, 2004 November 6]

2003 A2 (Gleason)
A very distant, 20th magnitude object, first observed by Spacewatch II on
January 10.39 has been found to show cometary activity. The preliminary
orbit assumed that it was near perihelion, and was at 11.52 AU. Brian
Marsden notes on MPEC 2003-A78 [2003 January 14] that

the assumed perihelic
parabolic orbit is very tentative. It seems
likely that the object is a Centaur, showing cometary activity as (2060) =
95P/Chiron has shown near perihelion.

A revised orbit [MPEC 2003-C47, 2003 February 8], including prediscovery
observations by Palomar/NEAT (found and measured in NEAT data by Sebastian
Hoenig and R Stoss), confirms these general circumstances. The latest orbit
[MPEC 2003-G50, 2003 April 9] puts perihelion in
2003 November at 11.4 AU, with the comet currently 11.5 AU from the Sun.
The perihelion distance is the largest on record.

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2003-G49 [2003 April 9] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.000059
and +0.000152 (+/- 0.000016) AU**-1,
respectively, suggesting that this is a "new" comet from the Oort cloud. The
current orbit is now strongly hyperbolic.

A/2003 AC1 (LINEAR)
is an asteroid, of 20th magnitude, discovered by LINEAR
on 2003 January 1.43. It is in a 5.7 year orbit, with perihelion at 1.09 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.66. It is at perihelion in mid February and will
brighten a little.
[MPEC 2003-A13, 2003 January 3, 2-day orbit]
The orbit is typical of a Jupiter family comet and it can approach within 1
AU of Jupiter, though it has not done so over the last century. It
approaches to 0.20 AU of the Earth at this return and this is one of its
closest approaches.
A/2003 AK73 (NEAT)
is an asteroid, of 19th magnitude, discovered by Palomar NEAT
on 2003 January 11.22. It is in a 5.1 year orbit, with perihelion at 0.76 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.74. It is past perihelion and will fade.
[MPEC 2002-A73, 2003 January 13, 2-day orbit]
The orbit is typical of a Jupiter family comet and it has made several
encounters within 1 AU of Jupiter over the last century. It can also
approach quite close to the Earth and was 0.11 AU away in December. It can
approach within 0.07 AU of our planet.
A/2003 BM1 (NEAT)
is an asteroid, of 20th magnitude, discovered by Palomar NEAT
on 2003 January 24.32. It is in a 7.8 year orbit, with perihelion at 1.86 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.53. Perihelion is in mid March, but the brightness
will not change significantly.
[MPEC 2003-B29, 2003 January 27, 3-day orbit]
The orbit is typical of a Jupiter family comet. The object encounters
Jupiter at both nodes and can approach within 0.35 AU.
A/2003 BU35 [LINEAR]
is an asteroid, discovered by LINEAR
on 2003 January 29. It is in a 7.2 year orbit, with perihelion at 1.73 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.54. It is next at perihelion in 2010 March. It will be
at its brightest (18th mag) in 2009 December.
[MPEC 2009-W137, 2009 November 29]
The orbit is typical of a Jupiter family comet and it can approach within 0.2
AU of Jupiter. The Tisserand parameter with respect to Jupiter is 2.82.
A/2003 BD44 (LONEOS)
is an asteroid, of 19th magnitude, discovered by LONEOS
on 2003 January 30.31. It is in a 5.6 year orbit, with perihelion at 0.67 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.79. Perihelion is at the beginning of July, but the
brightness will not change significantly.
[MPEC 2002-B54, 2003 January 31, 2-day orbit]
The orbit is typical of a Jupiter family comet. It approached within 0.3 AU
of Jupiter in October 2001 and will approach within 0.3 AU of the Earth in
July. It is a potentially hazardous object, passing 0.011 AU from the
Earth's orbit at the ascending node.
2003 CP7 (P/LINEAR-NEAT)
A 18th magnitude comet discovered on NEAT Palomar images obtained on March 10.36,
and posted on the NEO Confirmation Page, was reported by K.
Lawrence as showing a nuclear condensation of diameter about 7" and
a tail about 8" long toward the west. The cometary nature was
confirmed by J. Young at Table Mountain on Mar. 12.4 UT. The Minor
Planet Center has linked this object to an apparently asteroidal
LINEAR object of mag 19.0 on Feb. 1.39 and 4 that was designated 2003
CP_7 (MPS 73383-73384, Feb. 16).
[IAUC 8092, 2003 March 12] The comet is a distant one, with period of
8.05 years and will fade.
A/2003 CO1 (NEAT)
is an asteroid, of 20th magnitude, discovered by Palomar NEAT
on 2003 February 1.42. It is in a 96 year orbit, with perihelion at 10.94 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.48.
[MPEC 2003-F03, 2003 March 17, 1-year orbit]
The orbit is typical of a Chiron like object. It is still approaching perihelion,
which is in August 2006, so it may yet show cometary activity.
A/2003 CC11 (LINEAR)
is an asteroid, of 19th magnitude, discovered by LINEAR
on 2003 February 4.16. It was at perihelion in mid February and will
fade.
[MPEC 2003-C31, 2003 February 5, 2-day orbit] It is in a 5.5 year orbit, with perihelion at
1.28 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.59.
The orbit is typical of a Jupiter family comet and it can approach within 0.6
AU of Jupiter and 0.30 AU of the Earth. It is classed as an Amor asteroid. It
was re-observed in 2013.
A/2003 CC22 (CFHT)
is an asteroid, of 22nd magnitude, discovered by a team using the 3.6-m Canada-France-
Hawaii and 2.2-m University of Hawaii telescopes on Mauna Kea
on 2003 February 8.34. It is in a 21 year orbit, with perihelion at 4.20 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.44. It is at perihelion in September and will
fade.
[MPEC 2002-G16, 2003 April 3, 1-month orbit] The orbit is unusual, crossing that of
Jupiter and Saturn, both of which it can approach to within 1 AU..
2003 E1 (NEAT)
S. Pravdo reports another NEAT comet discovery, found on March 9.51
at 20th magnitude, the object
having a tail extending about 8" in p.a. 215 deg on Mar. 11. Young
also found it cometary on Mar. 12. The available astrometry, very
uncertain parabolic orbital elements [T = 2004 Mar. 13.3 TT, Peri.
= 110.8 deg, Node = 141.9 deg, i = 37.6 deg (equinox 2000.0), q =
2.950 AU], and an ephemeris appear on MPEC 2003-E48.
[IAUC 8092, 2003 March 12]
Follow up observations show that comet is an intermediate period one,
returning every 51 years and reaching perihelion in mid February 2004 at
3.2 AU. Its
brightness will not change significantly over the next six months.
A/2003 EH1 (LONEOS)
is an Amor type asteroid, and was 19th magnitude when discovered by LONEOS
on 2003 March 6.11.

The initial orbit on MPEC 2003-E27 [2003 March 7] was not particularly
unusual, apart from a high inclination, however further observations have given
a higher eccentricity. Peter Jenniskens has noted a close similarity to the
orbit of the Quadrantid meteors. It is worth further study to see if it shows
any cometary activity.
The orbit is typical of a Jupiter family comet and it can approach within 0.3 AU
AU of Jupiter and the Earth.
The object is in a 5.53 year orbit, with perihelion at 1.19 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.62. It was at perihelion in late February and will
fade.

P. Jenniskens, NASA Ames Research Center, has pointed out that
2003 EH_1 (cf. MPEC 2003-E27) would seem to be a very strong
candidate for the parent of the Quadrantid meteor stream. The
later orbits, from arcs of up to 48 days (MPO 48330), indicate that
frequent approaches within 0.2-0.3 AU of Jupiter occur, those
during the past century or two evidently increasing q from just
under 1 AU (with other orbital elements also very similar to those
of the Quadrantids) to the present 1.19 AU. The current
theoretical radiant for 2003 EH_1 (R.A. = 229.9 deg, Decl. = +49.6
deg; V_inf = 41.7 km/s at solar longitude 282.94 deg, equinox
2000.0) is at the center of the Quadrantid radiants measured by
photographic means, the narrow dispersion implying a young (about
500 years) shower age. From that dispersion, Jenniskens et al.
(1997, Astron. Astrophys. 327, 1242) suspected that the parent was
still among the meteoroids, hiding as a minor planet. On computing
a parabolic orbit for C/1490 Y1, Hasegawa (1979, Publ. Astron. Soc.
Japan 31, 257) introduced that comet as the likely Quadrantid
parent. In attempting to link the 2003 observations to those of
1490-1491, Jenniskens, and also B. G. Marsden (Center for
Astrophysics), have found that most of the potential solutions with
the required Jan. 1491 perihelion date yield 0.5 < q < 0.6 AU in
1491, and this is probably too small to fit the data used by
Hasegawa. Values in the more acceptable range of 0.7 < q < 0.8 AU
(and 0.80 > e > 0.75) certainly arise for 1488 < T < 1494, however,
the desired date being clearly attainable with the help also of a
close approach to the earth or -- more likely -- the presence of
nongravitational forces. Further light could be shed on the
problem by the recognition of precovery and/or recovery
observations of 2003 EH_1, which is presumably a comet and that
should in any case be considered a high-priority object for further
study.
[IAUC 8252, 2003 December 8]

Additional observations of the object were made at the end of December 2003
and early January 2004 from ESO, La Silla and these, together with a revised
orbit appeared on MPEC 2004-N22 [2004 July 5]. Brian Marsden notes

This is the presumed parent of the Quadrantid meteors (cf. IAUC 8252).
The recovery observations are still insufficient to shed much light on the
suggested identity with comet C/1490 Y1.

It is currently a southern hemisphere object and approaching aphelion, so
a difficult object to observe at 24th magnitude.
A/2003 EJ59 (LINEAR)
is an asteroid, of 18th magnitude, discovered by LINEAR
on 2003 March 12.24. It is in a 5.8 year orbit, with perihelion at 1.21 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.62. It is at perihelion in mid March and will
fade.
[MPEC 2003-E55, 2003 March 14, 2-day orbit]
The orbit is typical of a Jupiter family comet and it can approach within 0.2
AU of Jupiter and the Earth.
2003 F1 (LINEAR)
was discovered by LINEAR on March 23.43. It
has a perihelion distance of 4 AU and a period of 94 years. It will not brighten
significantly from its current 16th magnitude, reaching perihelion at the end
of June.

2003 F2 (P/NEAT)
is a distant periodic comet discovered by NEAT on March 27.20. It has a
perihelion distance of 2.9 AU, a period of 16 years and will fade. Syiuchi
Nakano notes that the preliminary orbit is very similar to that of 2001 BB50
(P/LINEAR-NEAT) and that both objects were last at perihelion in late March
1987. Maik Meyer notes that based on the present orbits their separation was
only 0.016 AU in July 1989. Further observations unfortunately remove the
possibility of splitting at the last return, although retain the similarity
of the orbits. Nakano also notes that the angular elements of the orbit are
similar to those of C/1931 AN, which has a poorly defined orbit based on
observations made over a few days.

An apparently asteroidal object of 20th magnitude, found by
the NEAT project on March 27.20, and posted on the NEO
Confirmation Page, has been reported as faintly cometary by a few
observers. G. Masi reports that CCD observations in good
conditions (0".9 seeing) with the Danish 1.54-m telescope at the
European Southern Observatory on Mar. 28.3 and 29.1 UT show the
object to be nonstellar, with a slight elongation toward p.a. 315
deg, such that a nuclear condensation appears on the southeast side
of a coma that has size 5".5 along a southeast-northwest axis and
4" along a northeast-southwest axis. Images taken with the 1.06-m
KLENOT telescope at Klet on Mar. 31.9 by M. Tichy and M. Kocer show
the object as slightly diffuse with a coma diameter of 6".
[IAUC 8104, 2003 April 1]

2003 G1 (LINEAR)
was discovered by LINEAR on April 8.45. It
has a perihelion distance of 4.9 AU. It was at
perihelion in early February and will not brighten
significantly from its current 15th magnitude.

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2003-P15 [2003 August 6] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.000014
and -0.000372 (+/- 0.000005) AU**-1,
respectively, suggesting that this is a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

2003 G2 (LINEAR)
was discovered by LINEAR on April 8.38. It
has a perihelion distance of 1.6 AU. It is near
perihelion and will not brighten
significantly from its current 17th magnitude.

L. Manguso, Lincoln Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, reports the LINEAR discovery of a comet with a 13" coma
visible on Apr. 9-10 (discovered on April 8.38 at 18th magnitude). Following
posting on the NEO Confirmation Page, the object was also reported
to have cometary appearance by G. Hug (Eskridge, KS, 0.3-m
reflector; diffuse with m_1 = 16.6 on Apr. 9.4 UT and m_1 = 17.3 on
Apr. 10.4) and by A. C. Gilmore and P. M. Kilmartin (Mt. John
University Observatory, 0.6-m reflector; diffuse on Apr. 11.6).
[IAUC 8116, 2003 April 11]

2003 G3 (SOHO)
was a non group comet discovered by John Sachs in C3 and C2 images on April
4. The prefered retrograde orbit suggests that it will be at around 30
degrees elongation from the Sun in late April and early May.
A/2003 GS22 (Kitt Peak)
is an asteroid, of 21st magnitude, discovered by R S McMillan with the 0.9-m
telescope at the Steward Observatory, Kitt Peak
on 2003 April 7.40. It is in a 5.1 year orbit, with perihelion at 1.15 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.61. It was at perihelion in March and will
fade.
[MPEC 2003-G44, 2003 April 9, 2-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet. It can approach to within 0.25 AU of Jupiter and approached to
within 0.18 AU of the Earth in February.
2003 H1 (LINEAR)
was discovered by LINEAR on April 24.38. It reached perihelion at 2.2 AU in
late February 2004. It came into visual range in January, but is now past its best.
I was able to glimpse it under transparent Antarctic skies on March 16.31
estimating it at 11.4:, with a 1.3', DC2 coma in my 9cm f5.6 refractor x40. The wind had been
15 - 20 knots, but dropped to 5 knots at the time of the observation, with an air temperature
of -2 Celcius. A quarter moon, only slightly brightened the sky. Under
very clear skies, just outside Stanley, Falkland Islands I made another
observation, recording the comet at 11.3 with a 2.4' diameter coma in the
0.09-m refractor. The main difficulty of observing was wind, but
conditions were OK in the lee of some rocks.

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2003-P16 [2003 August 6] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.000745
and +0.000450 (+/- 0.000008) AU**-1,
respectively, suggesting that this is not a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

2003 H2 (LINEAR)
was discovered by LINEAR on April 24.40. It is near perihelion at 2.2 AU and
will not brighten significantly from its current 17th magnitude. The orbit
is a long period ellipse, with period around 240 years.

Another apparently asteroidal object of 19th magnitude reported by LINEAR
on April 24.40, and posted on the NEO Confirmation
Page, has also been reported to be cometary on CCD frames taken on
Apr. 25 by Mikuz (diffuse with condensation and coma diameter about
20"), M. Tichy (Klet, 1.06-m reflector; diffuse with faint tail in
p.a. 270 deg), and Kusnirak (coma diameter about 10").
[IAUC 8122, 2003 April 25]

Further to IAUC 8122, J. McGaha (Tucson, AZ) reports that six
stacked 2-min CCD exposures taken on Apr. 25.3 UT (0.30-m reflector)
show a 6" coma and a 10" tail in p.a. 50 deg. [IAUC 8125, 2003 April 30]

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2003-P17 [2003 August 6] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.026849
and +0.026146 (+/- 0.000000) AU**-1,
respectively, confirming that this is not a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

2003 H3 (NEAT)
was discovered by NEAT on April 30.45. It was near perihelion at 2.9 AU and
will not brighten significantly from its present 16th magnitude.

S. H. Pravdo, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, reports the NEAT
discovery on Haleakala images of a 17th magnitude comet on April 30.45
with a coma diameter of about 14" and an unresolved
core of diameter about 4" or less. Following posting on the NEO
Confirmation Page, other observers have also reported the cometary
appearance from CCD images, including J. E. McGaha (0.30-m
reflector, Tucson, AZ; fainter outer coma of diameter about 10"
with a brighter core of diameter about 5"); J. Young (0.6-m
reflector, Table Mountain; coma diameter about 8", and 16" tail in
p.a. 250 deg, affected by cirrus clouds), and P. R. Holvorcem and
M. Schwartz (Tenagra IV 0.36-m telescope, near Nogales, AZ; coma
diameter 28" and m_1 = 15.4-15.7 on May 1.47).
[IAUC 8126, 2003 May 1]

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2003-P18 [2003 August 6] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.000438
and -0.000114 (+/- 0.000005) AU**-1,
respectively, suggesting that this is not a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

2003 H4 (P/LINEAR)
was discovered by LINEAR on April 29.33. It is near perihelion at 1.70 AU and
will not brighten significantly from its present 18th magnitude. The
preliminary observations suggest a period of around 6.1 years. The comet
approached within 0.46 AU of Jupiter in December 2000 and approached the planet
even closer at some previous returns. An encounter to within 0.02 AU in
April 2012 will reduce the perihelion distance to 1.17 AU, though the
subsequent two apparitions are not particularly favourable.

M. Bezpalko, Lincoln Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, reports the discovery by LINEAR of a comet with a tail
in p.a. 270 deg on images taken on Apr. 29.3 UT.
Following posting on the NEO Confirmation Page,
other CCD observers have also reported the object as cometary,
including G. J. Garradd (Tamworth, N.S.W., 0.45-m reflector;
slightly diffuse on most images taken on Apr. 30.6), J. E. McGaha
(Tucson, AZ, 0.30-m reflector; faint coma of size 5" x 10" and m_1
= 17.7-17.9, aligned north-south, with uniform brightness and no
apparent nuclear condensation or core on May 2.2), and J. G. Ries
(McDonald Observatory, 0.76-m reflector; 20" tail pointing slightly
south of west on May 2.3; m_1 = 17.7-18.0).
[IAUC 8127, 2003 May 1]

Orbital elements on MPEC 2003-K34, indicate
that this comet passed 0.07 AU from Jupiter in June 1929, before
which q and P were larger. [IAUC 8135, 2003 May 24]

2003 H6 (SOHO)2003 H7 (SOHO)
were non group comets discovered by Rainer Kracht in C2 images on April 30.
They are clearly related to each other.
2003 HT15 (P/LINEAR)
An apparently asteroidal object of 18th magntiude found by LINEAR on April
26.26 was found to be cometary by Carl Hergenrother on images taken with the
Mount Hobkins 1.2-m telescope on June 24.3. The comet has perihelion at 2.7
AU and a period of 9.9 years. It will fade.

An apparently asteroidal object reported by LINEAR (discovery
observation published on MPS 78496; prediscovery LINEAR
observations published on MPS 80247; orbital elements on MPO 48372)
has been found cometary by C. Hergenrother, who reports a diffuse
coma of diameter 15" (and mag 18.6 within an aperture of radius 8")
and a broad tail 60" long in p.a. 115 deg on co-added 900-s R-band
images taken on June 24.3 UT with the Mount Hopkins 1.2-m reflector.
[IAUC 8156, 2003 June 25]

A/2003 HP32 (Kitt Peak)
is an asteroid, of 21st magnitude, discovered by J A Larsen with the 0.9-m
telescope at the Steward Observatory, Kitt Peak
on 2003 April 26.31. It is in a 5.1 year orbit, with perihelion at 0.56 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.81. It reaches perihelion at the end of August, but
will remain near its current magnitude for the next few months.
[MPEC 2003-H50, 2003 April 30, 4-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet. It can approach to within 0.3 AU of Jupiter and within 0.1 AU
of the Earth.
2003 J1 (NEAT)
was discovered by NEAT on May 13.59. Originally reported at 19.4, amateur CCD
observations put it at around 17th magnitude. It reaches perihelion at 5.1 AU
in October.

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2003-O37 [2003 July 30] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.001841
and +0.001804 (+/- 0.000077) AU**-1,
respectively, suggesting that this is not a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

A/2003 JC11 (Kitt Peak)
is an asteroid, of 21st magnitude, discovered by J V Scotti with the 0.9-m
telescope at the Steward Observatory, Kitt Peak
on 2003 May 1.40. It is in a 5.3 year orbit, with perihelion at 1.35 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.56. It was at perihelion at the end of November
and will fade.
[MPEC 2003-J35, 2003 May 6, 5-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, though there have been no recent close approaches to either
Jupiter or the Earth.

It was refound as 2008 JL14, also at Kitt Peak. The linked orbit has a period of
5.0 years, with perihelion at 1.28 AU. The earth MOID is 0.46 AU.
[MPEC 2008-O29, 2008 July 26]

2003 K1 (Spacewatch)
An object initially reported as asteroidal by Spacewatch has been found to be
cometary by other observers, including some using the 0.41-m OAM relector at
Costitx, Mallorca. It is past perihelion and will fade from 18th magnitude.

An object of 20th magnitude initially reported as asteroidal by J. A. Larsen on
CCD images obtained with the 0.9-m Spacewatch reflector on May 23.38
was posted on the NEO Confirmation Page. CCD
images taken by A. Lopez and R. Pacheco (Mallorca, 0.41-m
reflector) on May 23.9 UT showed cometary appearance (and m_1 =
18.2-18.6). A. E. Gleason found the coma to be quite obvious on
May 24.3 images taken with the 1.8-m Spacewatch II reflector at
Kitt Peak, and Larsen found a 10" coma on Spacewatch I images taken
on May 24.4. [IAUC 8135, 2003 May 24]

2003 K2 (P/Christensen)
An object discovered by the Catalina sky survey on May 26.18 was quickly confirmed as
cometary. It passed perihelion at 0.55 AU in April, but is intrinsically
faint. It was visible on SWAN imagery and at brightest probably reached 10th
magnitude; it seems likely that it was the object reported in SWAN imagery
between April 5 to 19, but which was not confirmed visually due to low
elevation and poor elongation from the Sun.
It will fade from 14th magnitude. Its
elongation remains relatively
small and it will not be favourably placed for observation. As
astrometric observation accumulated there was
increasing evidence that it was a short period comet, with a period
between 12 and 17 years and perihelion distance around 0.6 AU. These
indications from orbits by Muraoka and others were confirmed on IAUC 8145
[2003 June 7] which gave an orbit with period of 6.5 years. Further orbit
computations
by Muraoka, Stoss and others using data up to June 15 have revised the orbit,
and there are no significant changes to the orbit at the next return. The
period is still uncertain by 1.5 months. An orbit by Marsden published on
MPEC 2003-M70 [2003 June 30] gives P as 5.75 years and q at 0.55 AU.

Eric Christensen, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, reports the
discovery of a 15th magnitude comet on May 26.18 by the Catalina
Sky Survey on CCD images taken with the 0.7-m Schmidt telescope.
Following posting on the NEO Confirmation Page, many observers
noted the obvious cometary nature of the object on CCD images taken
during May 27.1-27.2 UT, including R. Elliot (Fall Creek, WI; coma
diameter about 10"), P. R. Holvorcem and M. Schwartz (near Nogales,
AZ; coma diameter about 35", with a 30" tail in p.a. 106 deg), J.
Young (Table Mountain, CA; 10" coma and a very faint 40" tail in
p.a. 115 deg with a slight curve halfway along its length to p.a.
130 deg), and J. McGaha (Tucson, AZ; coma diameter 12", with slight
nuclear condensation and a 6" tail).
[IAUC 8136, 2003 May 27]

It has been noted by numerous individuals that the preliminary
orbital elements of comet C/2003 K2 (cf. IAUC 8136) place it close
to the position of an unconfirmed object found on SWAN ultraviolet
SOHO website images and reported to the Central Bureau on Apr. 14
by X.-m. Zhou (Bo-le, Xin-jiang, China). Measurements of the
object on six dates, Apr. 5-19, were forwarded to the Central
Bureau by Zhou (via D. H. Chen), by M. Mattiazzo, and by S. Hoenig;
the positions differed considerably, due to the poor resolution of
SWAN (uncertainty on the order of 1 degree). Two search
ephemerides based on various positions were circulated by the
Bureau to numerous visual and CCD observers in the hopes of optical
confirmation, but the searches (undertaken during the last week of
April by Zhou, A. Hale, Mattiazzo, Y. Kushida, and Y. Ezaki)
revealed nothing to as faint as mag 14.5. The following improved
parabolic orbital elements for C/2003 K2 (from MPEC 2003-K49)
indicate that the search-ephemeris positions in late April for the
SWAN object were no closer than about 2.5 degrees from C/2003 K2.
The comet might be of short period.
[IAUC 8138, 2003 May 30]

2003 K3 (SOHO)
was a faint non group comet discovered by Heiner Otterstedt in C3 images on
May 25. It appeared to be fading in images from late
on May 28, although not due at perihelion until June 1.
The preliminary orbit suggested that it would reach 25 degrees
elongation from the Sun in mid June, but was not reported by
ground based observers in the
Southern Hemisphere. It was not favourably placed for discovery prior to
perihelion.
2003 K4 (LINEAR)
An apparently asteroidal object of 18th magnitude found by LINEAR on May
28.38 has been found to be cometary by other observers. The preliminary
orbit suggested that it was a distant
object with perihelion at 8.5 AU in September, however other, more
interesting orbit solutions
were possible according to Maik Meyer. New elements issued on MPEC 2003-L08
[2003 June 3] confirmed the more interesting orbit, and the latest put
perihelion at 1.02 AU on 2004 October 13.8. The apparition circumstances are not
particularly favourable.

By early August 2003 it had brightened to 16th magnitude (CCD).
The first visual observations were made in February 2004. Initially it only brightened
slowly and reached 10th magnitude at the end of May. During June it has brightened quite rapidly
and reached 8th magnitude mid month and was approaching 7th magnitude by the end of the month.
It has passed its most northerly declination and is now heading south. On July 15 Juan José González
observing from Leon in Spain reported glimpsing the comet with the naked eye. During the rest
of July and up to mid August there was little change in brightness, with the comet remaining
at around 6.5. As it got lower in northern skies it become harder to observe, however I managed
to make a final observation of it on September 1.9, estimating it at around 6.5.

It passed through the SOHO LASCO fields as a 7m object from 2004 September 27
to 2004 October 13, rather fainter than was expected.
Alexandre Amorim recovered it at 7.3 in 20x80B on October 26.11. Andrew Pearce
reports detecting an anti-tail on November 13.80, when the comet was 7.2 in 20x80B.
The orbital plane crossing was on October 11.7 according to calculations by Akimasa Nakamura.
The comet remained fainter than expected, but fading only very slowly until 2005 January,
when it seemed to resume fading on the previous light curve.

An apparently asteroidal object found by the LINEAR survey
on May 28.38, posted on the NEO Confirmation Page,
has been found to show a round coma of diameter 5"-7" (m_1 = 17.5)
on CCD images taken by J. Young on May 29.5 and 30.4 UT with the
0.6-m reflector at Table Mountain. J. McGaha, Tucson, AZ, reports
that three stacked, 2-min CCD images, taken on May 29.4 with a
0.30-m reflector, show a 3" nuclear condensation and a 6" coma that
is offset to the northeast. [IAUC 8139, 2003 May 30]

Further to IAUC 8358, R. W. Russell, D. L. Kim, M. L. Sitko,
and W. J. Carpenter report 3-13-micron spectrophotometry of comet
C/2003 K4, obtained on June 20.3 UT at Mt. Lemmon (integration
times 90 min on the comet; reference star alpha Boo): "A continuum,
smooth to within the signal-to-noise, was seen to rise from 3.5 to
8 microns, beyond which a weak silicate emission band may have been
observed. An underlying blackbody continuum with a temperature of
about 235 +/- 10 K was fit to the continuum fluxes at 8.4 and 12
microns. This grain temperature is about 22 +/- 5 percent higher
than that of an equilibrium blackbody at the comet's heliocentric
distance. Using the same wavelength region (10.34-10.71 microns)
as for other, brighter comets in order to calculate a silicate-
feature-to-continuum ratio, the possible silicate feature was about
1.10 +/- 0.05 times higher than the continuum, with the silicate-
feature-to-continuum ratio > 1. The comet showed the following
narrowband (about 0.25 micron) magnitudes and combined random
errors: [8.0 microns] = 4.25 +/- 0.10; [10.5 microns] = 2.41 +/-
0.06; [12 microns] = 1.76 +/- 0.06. Due to the low flux level of
the comet and the weakness of its silicate feature, no structure
due to crystalline material was discernible."
[IAUC 8361, 2004 June 24]

M. L. Sitko, University of Cincinnati; R. W. Russell, D. K.
Lynch, and D. L. Kim, Aerospace Corporation; and R. B. Perry,
Langley Research Center, NASA, report on further infrared
spectrophotometry of comet C/2003 K4 (cf. IAUC 8361, 8378),
obtained on Aug. 5.3 and 6.3 UT using the Aerospace Corporation's
BASS spectrograph at the Infrared Telescope Facility 3-m reflector.
A smooth continuum was seen between 8 and 13 microns, with a
possible weak silicate emission band superimposed. Underlying
blackbodies with temperatures of 250 +/- 5 K and 245 +/- 5 K were
fitted to the continuum fluxes at 8.4 and 12 microns on Aug. 5 and
6, respectively. These grain temperatures are about 8-10 percent
higher than that of an equilibrium blackbody at the comet's
heliocentric distance. Using the 10.2-10.7-microns region to
calculate a silicate feature-to-continuum ratio, this ratio was
1.09 +/- 0.03 on Aug. 5, and 1.03 +/- 0.03 on Aug. 6. On Aug. 5, a
weak feature due to crystalline olivine may have been present at
11.2 microns. Scattered solar radiation was evident at wavelengths
shorter than 4 microns. The observed magnitudes determined between
10.2 and 10.7 microns, using the instrument's 3".4 aperture and 18"
nod, were 2.8 and 2.7 on Aug. 5 and 6, respectively (+/- 0.03 mag,
the errors being dominated by the presence of variable sky
transparency during the observations).
[IAUC 8391, 2004 August 18]

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2003-R44 [2003 September 9] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.000020
and -0.000199 (+/- 0.000014) AU**-1,
respectively, suggesting that this is a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

550 observations received so far
give a preliminary light curve of m = 4.0 + 5 log d + 11.1 log r,
though this does not fit the observations made close to conjunction very
well.

2003 KV2 (P/LINEAR)
An asteroidal object of 18th magnitude discovered by LINEAR on May 23.16 has
been found to be cometary by other observers. It reaches perihelion on July 10
at 1.06 AU and has a period of 4.85 years, the third shortest amongst
currently extant comets. It passed within 0.55 AU of
Jupiter in February 2001, before which the perihelion distance was somewhat
larger. It will not get much brighter than its present magnitude. The
preliminary orbit given on MPEC 2003 K27 was not particularly cometary,
whereas that for 2003 KU2 looked more promising.

Another apparently asteroidal LINEAR object found on May 23.16,
announced on MPEC 2003-K27 as 2003 KV_2 (see
also MPEC 2003-K38 and 2003-K47), has been found cometary on R-band
images taken by C. Brinkworth and M. Burleigh on May 28.9 and 29.9
UT with the 1-m Jacobus Kapteyn Telescope on La Palma (communicated
by A. Fitzsimmons), in which the object shows a tail about 4"-5"
long in p.a. 125 deg and a small coma that is somewhat larger than
the surrounding field stars.
The preliminary orbit shows a passage 0.55 AU from Jupiter in
Jan. 2001, before which the perihelion distance was somewhat larger.
[IAUC 8139, 2003 May 30]

A/2003 KP2 (LINEAR)
is an asteroid, of 19th magnitude, discovered by LINEAR
on 2003 May 22.34. It is in a 4.53 year orbit, with perihelion at 0.82 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.70. It will be at perihelion in mid October and
will brighten a little.
[MPEC 2003-R63, 2003 September 13] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, though there have been no recent close approaches to
Jupiter. It will pass 0.18 AU from the Earth in early October.
A/2003 KU2 (Kitt Peak)
is an asteroid, of 20th magnitude, discovered by A Tubbiolo with the 0.9-m
telescope at the Steward Observatory, Kitt Peak
on 2003 May 22.29. It is in a 4.6 year orbit, with perihelion at 0.80 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.71. It will be at perihelion at the end of October
and will brighten a little.
[MPEC 2003-K26, 2003 May 24, 2-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, though there have been no recent close approaches to either
Jupiter or the Earth. It is a potentially hazardous asteroid passing 0.026 AU
from Earth at the ascending node.
2003 L1 (P/Scotti)
Jim Scotti discovered this faint comet in Spacewatch data. Further
prediscovery images were found in Palomar NEAT data from 2002 April. The
comet is three months past
perihelion, which was at 5.0 AU. The period is 17.3 years.
It will fade.

J. V. Scotti, Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of
Arizona, reports the discovery of a 20th mag comet on CCD images taken with
the Spacewatch 0.9-m f/3 reflector at Kitt Peak on June 4.21,
showing a coma of diameter 6" and a faint tail
about 0'.62 long in p.a. 273 deg. Images taken by A. S. Descour on
June 5.3 UT with the 1.8-m f/2.7 Spacewatch reflector also show a
tail, and June 7.2 images by Scotti with the larger instrument show
the tail 0'.30 long in p.a. 273 deg. [IAUC 8145, 2003 June 7]

Clearly diffuse NEAT images of this comet, taken with the
Palomar 1.2-m Schmidt telescope on three nights in 2002 April, were
identified and measured by M. Meyer. Additional astrometry and the
following orbital elements (MPEC 2003-M21) confirm the suspicion
(cf. IAUC 8145) that this is a short-period comet.
[IAUC 8153, 2003 June 19]

2003 L2 (LINEAR)
was discovered by LINEAR on June 12.33. It will reach perihelion at 2.9 AU
in mid January 2004 and will brighten a bit from its current 18th magnitude.

An apparently asteroidal object found by LINEAR,
and posted on the NEO Confirmation Page, has
been found to be cometary on CCD images taken by S. Sanchez, R.
Stoss, and J. Nomen (Mallorca, 0.30-m f/9 reflector; 10" coma on
June 12.95 UT) and by S. Gajdos (Modra, 0.6-m f/5.5 reflector;
diffuse with coma diameter about 5" on June 13.97; m_1 = 18.0).
[IAUC 8151, 2003 June 14]

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2003-R45 [2003 September 9] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.006356
and +0.006809 (+/- 0.000011) AU**-1,
respectively, and the eccentricity is 0.9814155 showing that this is not a "new"
comet from the Oort cloud.

A/2003 MT (Kitt Peak)
is an asteroid, of 19th magnitude, discovered by M T Read with the 0.9-m
telescope at the Steward Observatory, Kitt Peak
on 2003 June 23.20. It is in a 5.3 year orbit, with perihelion at 1.22 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.60. It will be at perihelion in early August
but will fade.
[MPEC 2003-M42, 2003 June 24, 1-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, though there have been no recent close approaches to either
Jupiter or the Earth.
A/2003 MT9 (LINEAR)
is an asteroid, of 20th magnitude, discovered by LINEAR
on 2003 June 30.38. It is in a 4.1 year orbit, with perihelion at 0.20 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.92. It was at perihelion in mid August.
[MPEC 2003-N09, 2003 July 3, 3-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, and it can approach Jupiter to within 0.4 AU. It is a potentially
hazardous asteroid approaching the Earth to 0.041 AU at the ascending node.
2003 O1 (LINEAR)
An 18th magnitude comet was discovered by LINEAR on July 20.13. The provisional
orbit (given to rather high accuracy for only a three day arc) suggests that
it is a distant object some way from perihelion at 4.5 AU. Nick James reports
imaging it on July 20.97 in a rather crowded field, with Peter Birtwhistle imaging
it on July 20.95 and Stephen Laurie on July 20.96. Further observations confirm
the distant orbit, though with perihelion at 6.8 AU in March 2004.

An apparently asteroidal object reported by LINEAR,
and posted on the NEO Confirmation Page, has
been found to have cometary appearance on CCD images taken by P.
Kusnirak (Ondrejov; 0.65-m f/3.6 reflector; well-condensed
condensation and a faint 20" tail toward the southeast) and by P.
Birtwhistle (Great Shefford, U.K.; nuclear condensation of diameter
about 6" with a faint, short, broad tail about 15" long in p.a. 139
deg; mag 17.3-18.2).
[IAUC 8170, 2003 July 30]

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2003-R09 [2003 September 2] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.000225
and +0.000217 (+/- 0.000018) AU**-1,
respectively, suggesting that this is probably not a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

2003 O2 (P/LINEAR)
A 19th magnitude comet was discovered by LINEAR on July 29.38, although other CCD
observers estimate it at 17th magnitude. It reaches perihelion at 1.6 AU in
early September and may be of short period. It may brighten a little, but is
unlikely to reach visual magnitude limits. Peter Birtwistle imaged it on
July 31.04. It
shows a surprisingly long tail, perhaps suggesting a recent outburst.

Further observations confirm the short period nature of the orbit, with perihelion
at 1.5 AU in early September and a period of 8.8 years.
It will not get much brighter than at present.

M. Bezpalko, Lincoln Laboratory, reports the LINEAR discovery
of a comet, showing a tail
approximately 42" long in p.a. 230 deg. Other CCD observers report
mag 16.9-17.9 and a tail of up to 6' long in p.a. 245-250 deg on
July 30-31 (including S. Sanchez, R. Stoss, and J. Nomen at
Mallorca; R. Trentman and R. Frederick at Louisburg, KS; and P.
Birtwhistle at Great Shefford, U.K., who also noted a 9" central
condensation of mag 17.9, adding that the tail was very diffuse and
wide).
[IAUC 8172, 2003 July 31]

2003 O3 (P/LINEAR)
A 19th magnitude comet was discovered by LINEAR on July 30.39, although other CCD
observers estimate it at 18th magnitude. It was confirmed as cometary by Peter
Birtwhistle amongst others. The comet reached perihelion at 1.25 AU in mid August
and will fade. It passed 0.3 AU from Jupiter in 1979 November
and the period is 5.5 years.

An apparently asteroidal object reported by LINEAR,
and posted on the NEO Confirmation Page, has
been found to be apparently cometary on CCD images taken by P.
Birtwhistle (Great Shefford, U.K., 0.30-m reflector; very faint
tail about 10" long in p.a. approximately 270-280 deg on July 31.10
and Aug. 2.08 UT; mag 18.1 and coma diameter about 5" on Aug. 2.08),
by J. Ticha and M. Tichy (Klet, 1.06-m KLENOT telescope; diffuse
with a wide tail in p.a. 260 deg on Aug. 3.01), and by J. McGaha
(near Tucson, AZ; possible tail spike 5" long in p.a. 300 deg on
Aug. 3.38 with a 0.30-m reflector; possible fan-shaped tail 5" long
in p.a. 260 deg on Aug. 5.33 with a 0.62-m reflector).
The preliminary orbital elements
indicate that the comet passed 0.3 AU from Jupiter in Nov. 1979.
[IAUC 8174, 2003 August 5]

2003 QX29 (P/NEAT)
A 20th magnitude comet was discovered by NEAT on August 23.28, although some CCD
observers estimate it a little brighter. The comet is nearly a year past perihelion
and will fade. The perihelion distance is 4.2 AU and the period around 23 years.
Maik Meyer subsequently found prediscovery observations from Palomar/NEAT made
in June 2002, which give
a period of 22.73 years and perihelion at 4.24 AU according to calculations
by Muraoka.

2003 R1 (LINEAR)
was discovered by LINEAR on September 2.37.
It will not brighten significantly from its current 19th magnitude.
Calculations by Hirohisa Sato suggested that the orbit was elliptical.
The latest
MPEC gives perihelion at 2.1 AU in late June 2003 and a period of 87 years.

An apparently asteroidal object reported by LINEAR,
and posted on the NEO Confirmation Page, has
been reported to have cometary appearance on CCD images obtained by
J. Ticha and M. Tichy (Klet, 1.06-m KLENOT telescope; slightly
diffuse object with a 6" coma on Sept. 5.08 UT, and asymmetric coma
to the northwest on Sept. 6.05); and by J. E. McGaha (Tucson, AZ,
0.30-m f/10.0 Schmidt-Cassegrain reflector; 3" coma with a fan-
shaped tail 8" long in p.a. 320 deg on Sept. 6.39).
[IAUC 8195, 2003 September 6]

2003 R4 (SOHO)
was a non group comet discovered by Kazimieras Cernis in C2 images on September 8.
A/2003 RW11 (Table Mountain Observatory)
is an asteroid, of 19th magnitude, discovered by J Young with the 0.6-m
telescope at Table Mountain Observatory
on 2003 September 15.47. It is in a 5.1 year orbit, with perihelion at 0.46 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.84. It was at perihelion in mid June.
[MPEC 2003-S03, 2003 September 16, 1-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, and it can approach to within 0.5 AU of Jupiter and 0.08 AU of the Earth.
2003 S1 (P/NEAT)
A 19th magnitude comet was discovered by NEAT on September 23.60, with some
LINEAR prediscovery images found from September 4.3 and 20.3. Peter Birtwhistle
was amongst those making confirming images. The comet
reaches perihelion towards the end of March 2004,
though will remain near its present brightness.
The perihelion distance is 2.6 AU and the period 9.7 years. The comet
passed 0.18 AU from Jupiter in 1972 October.

M. Hicks, Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), reports the
discovery of a comet on CCD images obtained via the NEAT project
with the Haleakala 1.2-m telescope on September 23.60,
noting the object to be slightly diffuse with a slight elongation
to the west on images taken on Sept. 23.6 and 24.5 UT. Following
posting on the NEO Confirmation Page, P. Birthwhistle, Great
Shefford, U.K., reported that his CCD images taken with a 0.30-m
reflector on Sept. 24.0 show a coma with diameter about 10" offset
toward the southwest with a possible 30" tail in p.a. approximately
250 deg. J. Mahony, Lafayette, IN, communicates that his images
with a 0.30-m Schmidt-Cassegrain reflector on Sept. 24.2 show a
diffuse coma and a tail about 10" long in p.a. 250 deg. S. D.
Gillam, JPL, obtained confirming images with the 0.6-m telescope at
Table Mountain on Sept. 24.2, showing a coma of diameter
approximately 10" with mag R = 18.3. Images taken with the 1.06-m
KLENOT telescope at Klet by M. Tichy on Sept. 24.9 show a tail in
p.a. 260 deg.
[IAUC 8208, 2003 September 24]

2003 S2 (P/NEAT)
An 18th magnitude comet was discovered by NEAT on September 24.61, with some
LINEAR prediscovery images found from September 19.36. Peter Birtwhistle
was amongst those making confirming images. Hirohisa Sato has provided
improved orbital elements which show that the comet
reached perihelion in late August with
perihelion distance at 2.4 AU and a period around 7.6 years. The latest MPEC
gives similar values with perihelion in early September at 2.5 AU and period
7.5 years. It will fade

2003 S3 (LINEAR)
was discovered by LINEAR on September 27.38. It is a distant object that was
at perihelion in mid April at 8.1 AU. It will slowly fade from its current
19th magnitude.

M. Bezpalko, Lincoln Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, reports the LINEAR discovery of a comet on September 27.38, their
images showing a tail in p.a. 260 deg.
Following web-posting on the NEO Confirmation Page, J. Young
reported that CCD images taken with the 0.6-m reflector at Table
Mountain on Sept. 28.4 and 29.4 UT reveal a 5" coma and a straight,
narrow tail 20" long in p.a. 65 deg and 57 deg, respectively.
[IAUC 8211, 2003 September 29]

Nakano has identified a LINEAR asteroid 2002 XM113 with the comet.

2003 S4 (LINEAR)
was discovered by LINEAR on September 26.17. It is a distant object that will reach
perihelion at 3.9 AU in late May 2004. It will not brighten significantly from its current
18th magnitude. The latest orbits are significantly elliptical, with an eccentricity of 0.9
and a period of around 250 years.

The comet has split into two components. Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2004-U10
(2004 October 18) that The "original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a for C/2003 S4-A
are +0.025071 and +0.025582 (+/- 0.000004) AU^-1, respectively; those for
C/2003 S4-B are +0.025069 and +0.025579 AU^-1.

Z. Sekanina, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, writes: "Application of
my comet fragmentation model (Sekanina 1982, in Comets, Univ. of
Arizona Press, p. 251) to this comet's observed duplicity (MPECs
2004-T44 and 2004-U10) shows that component B is the principal
nucleus. This result is supported by the location of component A
between components B and C, a suspected third fragment, on an image
taken by R. Ferrando on 2004 Oct. 9 (see
http://www.aerith.net/comet/catalog/2003S4/pictures.html). The
astrometric observations made in Sept.-Oct. 2004 allow one to
determine four of the model's five parameters for component A. The
radial component of its separation velocity from B is indeterminate.
Solutions with this velocity component assumed to point away from
the sun provide marginally better data matches. When it is limited
to a range from 0 to 2 m/s, the time of splitting comes out to be
between 2004 May 23 and June 17 (3 days before to 22 days after
perihelion) at 3.86 AU from the sun, with the differential
nongravitational deceleration decreasing from 140 to 90 units of
10**-5 solar attraction and with the transverse and normal
components of the separation velocity near 0.8 m/s in the direction
opposite the orbital motion and 0.2 m/s pointing below the orbital
plane, respectively. The high deceleration of the companion
(nucleus A) indicates that it is a short-lived fragment with an
estimated lifetime of 12-33 equivalent days. At a heliocentric
distance of about 4 AU this means that the secondary can possibly
be observed for several more months, unless the comet's rapid
fading, apparently triggered by this nucleus fragmentation,
continues. Predicted separations and position angles of A relative
to B are as follows (0 TT, equinox 2000.0): 2004 Nov. 11, 12".9,
289 deg; Dec. 1, 13".9, 296 deg; Dec. 21, 14".7, 301 deg; 2005 Jan.
10, 15".5, 304 deg; Jan. 30, 16".5, 305 deg; Feb. 19, 17".8, 304
deg; Mar. 11, 19".6, 301 deg."
[IAUC 8434, 2004 November 10]

2003 S9 (SOHO)
was a non group comet discovered by Rainer Kracht in C2 images on September 25.
P/2003 SQ215 (NEAT-LONEOS)
An object originally reported as stellar by NEAT and LONEOS has been found
to show a coma by Alan Fitzsimmons et al. The period is nearly 13 years
and it reaches perihelion at 2.30 AU in late March 2004.

An apparently asteroidal object reported independently by the
NEAT (on September 24.18) and LONEOS (on September 27.16) projects
has been found to show a nonstellar appearance in individual
30-s R-band images taken by A. Fitzsimmons and C. Snodgrass,
Queen's University of Belfast, and O. Hainaut, European Southern
Observatory (ESO), on 2004 Jan. 19.0 UT at the ESO 3.6-m New
Technology Telescope (+ SUSI-2 camera). Fitzsimmons adds that co-
addition of the frames shows an asymmetric coma of total mag 20.3
extending 1".7 in p.a. 130 deg. [IAUC 8274, 2004 January 23]

A/2003 SB220 (LINEAR)
is an asteroid, of 18th magnitude, discovered by LINEAR
on 2003 September 28.12. It is in a 5.8 year orbit, with perihelion at 1.32 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.59. It was at perihelion in early September.
[MPEC 2003-S89, 2003 September 30, 2-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, and it can approach Jupiter to within 0.4 AU.
2003 T1 (157P/Tritton)
D/1978 has been recovered in outburst at around 12th magnitude. P Holvorcem reported
that C Juels had found a fast moving cometary object and this was confirmed by other
observers. Following suggestions from Sebastian Hoenig, based on computations by Maik
Meyer, Brian Marsden was able to confirm the identity with comet D/1978 (Tritton) that
had been observed for a month in 1978. The linkage shows that the period estimated from
the 1978 apparition was incorrect. The original prediction was for a return in early
March, based on a period of 6.32 years, however the actual perihelion was on September
24 and the period is 6.45 years. The current brightness suggests that the object is in
outburst and its future brightness is uncertain.

Keith Tritton provides the following information about the original disovery:

I'm amazed (and delighted) it's been recovered. It's quite a story - it
was very faint on discovery in 1978 (I think it may even have been the
faintest comet ever discovered at that time), when I was working on the
Southern UK Schmidt Sky Survey. The orbit was observed over only a very
short arc. The first return was very unfavourable, so it couldn't be seen,
and the orbital inaccuracy was so large that the predictions for the
second return had huge uncertainties. Nevertheless I got some plates taken
at the Schmidt (this was about 1990) and sent to me in Cambridge for
searching. But I never got them, they were lost in transit from Australia!

So I never expected to hear anything more about it. It must be rather rare
to pick up a lost comet on its fourth return, mustn't it?

P. Holvorcem, Campinas, Brazil, has reported that the co-
addition of three 45-s unfiltered CCD images of a fast-moving
object found by C. Juels, Fountain Hills, AZ, with a 0.12-m f/5
refractor and a 0.5-m f/4.8 reflector on October 6.44
show a coma of diameter 2' and a hint of a 1'.5 tail at p.a.
roughly 257 deg. Following posting on the NEO Confirmation Page,
additional CCD observers noted the object's cometary appearance,
including R. Trentman (Louisburg, KS, 0.75-m reflector; mag 13.1
and very faint evidence of a tail approximately 10" long in p.a.
approximately 280 deg on Oct. 7.4 UT), D. T. Durig (Sewanee, TN,
0.30-m f/5.86 reflector; teardrop-shaped coma of mag 10.1 with a
tail at least 2'-2'.5 long in p.a. about 285 deg on Oct. 7.4), and
J. Young (Table Mountain, CA, 0.6-m reflector; 36" coma elongated
to 48", with a 3' tail in p.a. 289 deg with a very straight and
extremely thin jet of length about 1'.5 in its center on Oct. 7.5).

Following a suggestion by S. Hoenig (Dossenheim, Germany) from
orbital computations by M. Meyer (Kelkheim, Germany), B. G. Marsden
(Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory) has shown that this comet
is identical to the lost comet 1978d = 1977 XIII = D/1978 C2
(Tritton), which was observed for only a month (cf. IAUC 3175,
3186, 3194, 3198). The available astrometry, including Sept. 22
prediscovery observations, and the orbital elements by
Marsden appear on MPEC 2003-T37.
[IAUC 8215, 2003 October 7]

2003 T2 (LINEAR)
LINEAR discovered an 18th mag object on Oct 13.44 which was found to be cometary
by other observers and possibly as bright as 15th magnitude. It reached perihelion at
1.79 AU in mid November, but no visual observations were reported.

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2004-A07 [2004 January 3] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
-0.000065
and +0.000653 (+/- 0.000024) AU**-1,
respectively, suggesting that this is a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

2003 T3 (Tabur)
Vello Tabur discovered a somewhat condensed comet of 12th magnitude on October 14.57,
which was posted on the NEO confirmation page. It was confirmed the next day by
Terry Lovejoy and other Australian observers and announced on IAUC 8223. This
circular also announced the recovery of the only named but un-numbered and lost minor
planet, Hermes after 31 revolutions.

Vello Tabur, Australian Capital Territory, reports his
discovery of a somewhat-condensed comet with a 30" coma on
unfiltered CCD images taken with a 140-mm f/2.8 camera lens on Oct.
14.481 UT. T. Lovejoy (Thornlands, Queensland, 0.16-m reflector)
reports that a CCD exposure taken on Oct. 15.5 shows a 0'.7 coma of
total mag 11.6 and a fan-shaped tail about 1' long in p.a. 90 deg.
[IAUC 8223, 2003 October15]

The latest MPEC and orbits by Hirohisa Sato give perihelion at 1.48 AU towards
the end of April 2004.
Sato's orbit suggests that the comet passed through the SOHO C3 coronagraph
field between 2004 February 20 and 2004 March 25, though there were no conclusive
observations reported. It emerged from solar conjunction as a 9th magnitude object in early
May, however it was low in the summer twilight and not easy to observe. I glimpsed it in
mid June, estimating it at around 10th magnitude. Observers in mid September
estimated it at around 11.5. It will slowly fade through to the end of year, but remains
in the morning sky.

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2004-A08 [2004 January 3] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.000176
and +0.000878 (+/- 0.000043) AU**-1,
respectively, suggesting that this is probably not a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

2003 T4 (LINEAR)
LINEAR discovered an 20th mag object on Oct 13.45 which was found to be cometary
by other observers. From the initial orbit it appeared to be a distant object
near perihelion, however
Sebastian Hoenig computed a rather more interesting orbit, which gave perihelion
at 0.75 AU in March 2005. The MPECs confirm this rather more
interesting orbit, with perihelion at 0.85 AU in early April 2005.
The indications are that the comet could reach 8th magnitude.

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2004-A09 [2004 January 3] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.000169
and -0.000827 (+/- 0.000069) AU**-1,
respectively, suggesting that this is probably not a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

For the past several weeks it has been evident that the "usual" procedure
for handling orbital nongravitational effects is not working for this comet,
if the desire is to obtain a consistent representation of the observations and
some degree of future predictability. A fit to the observations since
Oct. 2004, when water-ice vaporization could be expected to become significant,
seems quite satisfactory but still gives the unusually large value of
A1 = +12; on the other hand, as is rather to be expected, the observations
during the previous twelve months are fully compatible with gravitational
motion. The orbit provided above has been computed by S. Nakano using a
formulation by S. Yabushita (1996, MNRAS 283, 347) that presumes more
nongravitational activity at greater heliocentric distances and is based on
carbon-monoxide vaporization.

I tentatively estimated
it at 13.4 on September 18.93. By November it was becoming easier to see, and had
brightened to 12.5.
Seiichi Yoshida noted that images taken by Giovanni Sostero on November 21 show a
dust trail 3.5' long. It is very unusual for non periodic comets to
show a trail. Giovanni Sostero has also noted that the comet appears very red.
Very few observers appeared to attempt observing it, possibly because it
was most easily seen from higher northern latitudes and was only visible in the northern sky.
I observed it on December 11, estimating it at 10.5 in my 0.33-m Dobsonian reflector. On
January 21.2 it was 11.0 in the N'land refractor x185. After several attempts at observation
in the following month that were thwarted by cloud, I finally observed it again on February 20.2
estimating it at 9.7 in the N'land x105 and 9.4 in 20x80B. It was another month before I saw
it another time, by when it had brightened to 8.7 in 25x100B.
It will be a southern hemisphere object after perihelion.

2003 T12 (SOHO)
was a non group comet discovered by Jim Danaher on November 6 in C3 images from October 9 -
12.

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2004-K33 [2004 May 21] that "It is possible that
C/2003 T12 has a short period and somewhat smaller
perihelion distance, but the latter is limited by the minimum solar
elongation of 5.3 deg. The object seems to have been too faint to show on
SOHO-SWAN frames. Maike Meyer has calculated the periodic orbit, which has
a period of 4.34 years and a perihelion distance of 0.46 AU.

2003 U1 (LINEAR)
LINEAR discovered an 18th mag object with halo on Oct 19.38 which was confirmed to be cometary
by other observers. It was at perihelion at 1.8 AU in early November
and will fade from 17th magnitude.
Orbits by Sato and Marsden show that it is a periodic
comet, with period around 109 years.

L. Manguso and H. Stange, Lincoln Laboratory, Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, report the discovery of a comet with a
definite halo but no tail on LINEAR images on October 19.38.
Following posting on the NEO Confirmation Page, two other
CCD observers have also commented on the cometary appearance: J. E.
McGaha (Tucson, AZ, 0.30-m reflector; faint 10" coma elongated in
p.a. 240 deg on Oct. 20.3 UT) and J. Young (Table Mountain, CA,
0.6-m reflector; coma of diameter 6" and mag 17.5 with a tail about
16" long in p.a. 276 deg).
[IAUC 8227, 2003 October 20]

2003 U2 (P/LINEAR)
LINEAR discovered an 18th mag comet on October 19.09 which was confirmed to be cometary
by other observers. Prediscovery images back to September 19 were also found.
It is at perihelion in early December at 1.7 AU and has a period of 9.6 years.
It will fade from 18th magnitude.

F. Shelly, Lincoln Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, reports the discovery of a comet with a diffuse coma
and a very wide, fan-shaped tail in p.a. 85 deg on LINEAR images
on October 19.09. Following posting on the NEO
Confirmation Page, other CCD observers have also commented on the
cometary appearance on Oct. 21.1-21.2 UT, including J. Young at
Table Mountain (0.6-m reflector; 5" coma without central
condensation and with a fan-shaped tail about 25" long spanning
p.a. 70-95 deg) and R. Fredrick and T. Medlock at Louisburg, KS
(0.75-m reflector; 30" tail in p.a. 80 deg).
[IAUC 8229, 2003 October 21]

2003 U3 (P/NEAT)
NEAT discovered an 19th mag comet on October 22.29.
It is past perihelion at 2.5 AU in late April and has a period around 11.5 years.
It will fade from 18th magnitude.

K. Lawrence, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, reports the discovery
by the NEAT project of a 19th magnitude comet on 2003 October 22.29.
Observations by J. Young at Table Mountain on Oct. 23.2 UT show a
3" coma with a short, broad, fan-shaped tail about 8" long spanning
p.a. 255-285 deg.
[IAUC 8230, 2003 October 23]

2003 UD16 (159P/LONEOS)
LONEOS discovered an 19th mag asteroid on October 16.40. Subsequent images taken by Carl
Hergenrother with the Mt Hopkins 1.2 m reflector on November 30.21 showed cometary features.
It will reach perihelion in early March at 3.65 AU and has a period of 14.3 years. It
will not get any brighter.

An apparently asteroidal object with not-unusual motion, found
by LONEOS on October 16.40 (the discovery observation
together with other astrometry appeared on MPS 88336, 90581, and
91035 with the designation 2003 UD_16; initial orbit on MPO 53844),
has been found by C. W. Hergenrother to show a circular, condensed
11" coma and no tail on co-added 900-s R-band CCD exposures taken
on Nov. 30 with the Mt. Hopkins 1.2-m reflector (astrometry below
measured by T. B. Spahr).
[IAUC 8248, 2003 December 3]

Maik Meyer has found images of the comet on Palomar plates taken in 1989 and 1991,
thus allowing a secure orbit to be determined. The comet was therefore
numbered 159P.

2003 UY275 (P/LINEAR)
LINEAR discovered an 18th mag asteroid on October 29.32. Subsequent images taken by Carl
Hergenrother with the Mt Hopkins 1.2 m reflector on November 30.25 showed cometary features and
these were confirmed by other observers. Prediscovery images back to October 5 were also found.
It was at perihelion in early July at 1.8 AU and has a period around 7.2 years.
It will fade from 18th magnitude.

An apparently asteroidal object discovered by the LINEAR
project on 2003 October 29.32 has
been found to show cometary appearance on CCD images taken with the
Mt. Hopkins 1.2-m reflector on Nov. 30.25 UT by C. W. Hergenrother;
his co-added 1200-s R-band exposures show a highly condensed 16"
coma and a narrow tail 100" long in p.a. 280 deg (mag 18.5
determined by T. B. Spahr). Also, R. S. McMillan noted the object
as diffuse in Spacewatch incidental observations made on Nov. 30.4.
[IAUC 8247, 2003 December 2]

A/2003 UO12 (Spacewatch)
is an asteroid, of 21st magnitude, discovered with the Spacewatch II telescope
on 2003 October 21.26. It is in a 5.5 year orbit, with perihelion at 0.94 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.70. It is at perihelion in mid December.
[MPEC 2003-U44, 2003 October 22, 1-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, and it can approach to within 0.1 AU of Jupiter and 0.05 AU of the Earth.
A/2003 UY283 (Spacewatch)
The discovery of an unusual asteroid, found by Spacewatch on October 18.36 was
announced on MPEC 2003 V58 [2003 November 14]. The 21st magnitude object is in
a 195 year periodic orbit with perihelion at 3.51 AU and has just passed perihelion.
Aphelion is at 64 AU.
2003 V1 (LINEAR)
LINEAR discovered an 18th mag comet with tail on November 4.47 which was confirmed
by other observers. It is past perihelion, which was at 1.78 AU in mid March and will
fade from 16th magnitude. The comet could have reached 13th magnitude near perihelion
but was then in solar conjunction. It could potentially have been discovered by a Southern
Hemisphere search programme in 2002, or found in the 'twilight zone' not searched by LINEAR
by amateur CCD observers located in the tropics or southern hemisphere during November to
January, or by northern observers from late August onwards.

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2004-B51 [2004 January 26] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.001411
and +0.002242 (+/- 0.000035) AU^-1,
respectively, suggesting that this is not a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

Sedna (2003 VB12)
This object is the first member of the inner Oort cloud to be discovered. With a perihelion
distance of 75.8 AU, aphelion at nearly 1000 AU and an orbital period of 12,000 years it is the
most distant member of the solar system to be found. At several hundred kilometres in
diameter it is smaller in size than Pluto and would be a substantial comet if ever made it
into the inner solar system. It is currently just under 90 AU from the Sun, moving in towards
perihelion, which is in about 70 years time.
2003 W1 (LINEAR)
LINEAR discovered an 18th mag object on November 16.08 which was found to be cometary
by other observers.
Hirohiso Sato noted that the early observations were also fitted quite well by a periodic
orbit with a period of 9.3 years. This would be rather unusual in a comet with an orbital
inclination of around 75 degrees. However as more observations accumulated, orbits published
in the MPECs were given as elliptical. The comet has a
periodic orbit of 126 years, inclination 78 degrees and perihelion in early
November at 1.65 AU. It will fade.

2003 WC7 (LINEAR-Catalina)
LINEAR discovered a 20th mag object on November 18.14 which was observed on
two nights. It was independently discovered by the Catalina Sky Survey on
January 31.14 and posted on the NEO confirmation page. Other observers then
noted a coma and tail. The object is in 11.8 year orbit with perihelion at
1.65 AU in early February.

An apparently asteroidal object was discovered by the LINEAR
project on 2003 Nov. 18 (observed on only two nights) and given the
designation 2003 WC_7 (MPS 91151). The object was discovered
independently on Jan. 31 by the Catalina Sky Survey and then posted
on the NEO Confirmation Page. As a result, it has been found to
show cometary appearance on CCD exposures taken by J. Young (Table
Mountain, 0.6-m reflector, Feb. 1.15 UT; very diffuse coma of mag
17.5 and diameter 5", very little central condensation, and a
straight, narrow 10" tail in p.a. 345 deg) and by G. J. Garradd and
R. H. McNaught (Siding Spring, 1.0-m f/8 reflector, Feb. 1.46; coma
diameter 3".5 in 2".5 seeing; no obvious tail visible in five co-
added 40-s frames).
[IAUC 8280, 2004 February 1]

A/2003 WM7 (NEAT)
is an asteroid, of 19th magnitude, discovered by Palomar NEAT
on 2003 November 18.21. It is in a 4.6 year orbit, with perihelion at 0.27 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.90. It reaches perihelion in mid March 2004.
[MPEC 2002-W21, 2003 November 20, 2-day orbit]
The orbit is typical of a Jupiter family comet and it can approach within
0.4 AU of Jupiter. It can approach within 0.1 AU of our planet. If it shows
cometary activity it could reach 9th magnitude at perihelion and it will pass
within the LASCO C3 field from March 14 to 20. At its last return in August
1999 it would only have reached 14th magnitude.
A/2003 WB8 (LINEAR)
is an asteroid, of 19th magnitude, discovered by LINEAR
on 2003 November 18.14, but linked to 1987 FJ1. It is in a 5.9 year orbit,
with perihelion at 1.46 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.55. It reaches perihelion in late June 2004.
[MPEC 2003-W27, 2003 November 20] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, and it can approach Jupiter to within 0.2 AU.
2003 WY25 (P/Blanpain-Catalina)
was initially identified as an asteroid, of 18th magnitude, discovered by the Catalina Sky Survey
on 2003 November 22.15. It is in a 5.3 year orbit, with perihelion at 1.00 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.67. It reached perihelion in mid December.
[MPEC 2003-W41, 2003 November 22, 28-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, and it can approach Jupiter to within 0.2 AU, approaching it to
0.4 AU in 1995. It is also a PHA, approaching earth to 0.005 AU at the ascending
node. It approached the Earth to 0.025 AU in mid December, when it reached 15th mag.

As noted above the preliminary announcement of this asteroid suggested that it could be
a Jupiter family comet, and this has proved to be the case. M Micheli (Italy) and Peter
Jenniskens both suggested an identity with the lost periodic comet Blanpain (D/1819 W1), and Brian
Marsden has now conclusively linked the asteroid with the comet. Harold Ridley has also
tentatively linked the comet with the Phoenicid meteor shower of 1956 December 5. [IAUC 8485,
2005 February 13]

At discovery the comet was around 6.5, with a coma of 6 - 7 ' diameter. It was observed for 59 days.
Although Vsekhsvyatskij gives an absolute magnitude of 8.5, this doesn't fit the ephemeris very well and
10.5 is more likely.

The original orbit for comet Blanpain appears to have been relatively good, however the
period was around a month out. Since its discovery apparition it made a further 34 returns
prior to its recovery as an asteroid in 2003. Perihelion distance has varied between 0.87
and 1.04 AU, and it passed 0.31 AU from Jupiter in 1995. There were close approaches to the
Earth at the discovery in 1819 (0.11 AU in October before discovery), 1866 (0.08 AU in November),
1919 (0.06 AU in November/December). It will make future close approaches in 2020 (0.09 AU in January)
and 2035 (0.09 AU in November). [Orbits calculated by Kenji Muraoka and myself]

Already more than a year ago, S. Foglia, Milan, Italy,
reported a suggestion by M. Micheli that backward integration of
the orbit of 2003 WY25 given on MPEC 2003-Y78 (Catalina Sky Survey
discovery announcement on MPEC 2003-W41) suggested possible
identity -- though showing discordances extending up to 17 deg in
the argument of perihelion (Peri.) -- with the lost comet D/1819 W1
= 1819 IV, which was itself tentatively shown by H. B. Ridley (1957,
BAA Circ. No. 382) to be related to the one-time Phoenicid meteor
shower of 1956 Dec. 5. P. Jenniskens, NASA Ames Research Center,
has now independently suggested the 1819-2003 identity with a Peri.
discordance of 0.2 deg. Computations by B. G. Marsden, Harvard-
Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, that included reexamination
of the 1819-1820 observations confirm a best-fit gravitational
linkage with Peri. discordance 0.2 deg. He also showed that the
discordances in all three angular elements can be reduced to 0.01
deg by starting from the following orbital elements for 2003 WY25
(which had H = 21.1 and was consistently of stellar appearance
despite a passage only 0.025 AU from the earth on 2003 Dec. 12):

which satisfactorily represents 10 of the 13 observations made at
Paris, Bologna, and Milan during 1819 Dec. 14-1820 Jan. 15 within
90 arcsec. The integrated orbital elements at the time of the
Phoenicid shower are T = 1956 Oct. 25.32 TT, Peri. = 0.14 deg, Node
= 74.37 deg, i = 9.60 deg (equinox 2000.0), q = 0.9914 AU, e =
0.6767, a = 3.0669 AU, P = 5.37 years.
[IAUC 8485, 2005 February 13]
A/2003 WE42 [Dossin]
is an asteroid, of 18th magnitude, identified with asteroid 1982 YA, which was discovered by
F Dossin at Haute Province observatory. It is in a 6.92 year orbit, with perihelion at 1.10 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.67. It reached perihelion in mid October 2003.
[MPEC 2004-D48, 2004 February 28] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, and it can approach Jupiter to within 1 AU, and the Earth to within 0.2 AU.
2003 WT42 (LINEAR)
was first identified as an unusual asteroid, of 18th magnitude,
discovered by LINEAR
on 2003 November 19.26. The initial elements gave a 13,000 year orbit,
with perihelion at 5.23 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.991, with perihelion in April 2006.
[MPEC 2003-W48, 2003 November 24, 28-day orbit]

Observations in mid January 2004 demonstrated the presence of a coma, confirming
the object as a comet. The latest orbit is hyperbolic, but perihelion remains
a distant one at 5.19 AU in mid April 2006.

The Central Bureau has received word that a weak coma has been
imaged for 2003 WT_42, an object originally reported as asteroidal
by LINEAR (cf. MPEC 2003-W48, MPS
92017), by R. P. Binzel (at the Kitt Peak 4-m telescope) and by J.
Licandro, M. Serra-Ricart, J. de Leon Cruz, and N. Pinilla-Alonso
(at the 3.56-m Telescopio Nazionale Galileo + Near Infrared Camera-
Spectrograph and the 2.5-m Nordic Optical Telescope + Andalucia
Faint Object Spectrograph and Camera). Binzel reports that, in
1".5 seeing on 2003 Dec. 29.1-29.2 UT with the TV guider, 2003
WT_42 appeared distinctly more diffuse than stars of similar
brightness, with a coma diameter of about 2"; broadband (500-900
nm) images showed larger north-south FWHM profiles when compared to
stars of similar brightness. Licandro et al. report that a coma
diameter of about 6"-10" (total mag R = 17.4 +/- 0.1; R-J = 0.8 +/-
0.15, which is close to the solar color) was clearly seen on
simultaneous infrared and visible (broadband R and J_s) images of
2003 WT_42 obtained on 2004 Jan. 14.9.
[IAUC 8270, 2004 January 16]

Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2004-E05 [2004 March 1] that the
"original" and "future" barycentric values of 1/a are
+0.000207
and +0.000362 (+/- 0.000120) AU^-1,
respectively, suggesting that this could be a "new" comet from the Oort cloud.

A/2003 WG166 (LINEAR)
is an unusual asteroid, of 19th magnitude, discovered by LINEAR
on 2003 November 30.26. It is in a 11.7 year, high inclination orbit,
with perihelion at 1.84 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.64. It reaches perihelion at the end of December.
[MPEC 2003-X24, 2003 December 4, 4-day orbit] There have been no recent
close approaches to Jupiter or the Earth, largely thanks to the high
inclination orbit.
A/2003 WN188 (Catalina)
is an asteroid, of 19th magnitude, discovered by the Catalina Sky Survey
on 2003 November 29.41. It is in a 55 year orbit, with perihelion at 2.22 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.85. It reaches perihelion in early April 2004.
[MPEC 2003-Y43, 2003 December 22, 28-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a
comet, though there have been no recent approachs to Jupiter or Saturn closer
than 3 AU.
2003 XD10 (P/LINEAR-NEAT)
LINEAR discovered an 19th mag asteroid on December 4.34. NEAT independently
discovered the object on December 14.43 and reported it as cometary. It was posted
on the NEO confirmation page on cometary activity was noted by Peter Birtwhistle amongst
others. Prediscovery images were made by LINEAR on November 20. The preliminary
elliptic orbit of 6.1 years puts it at perihelion in mid September at 1.88 AU. It will fade.

An apparently asteroidal object with not-unusual motion
reported on Dec. 4 and 5 by the LINEAR project, and designated 2003
XD_10 on MPS 92917, was independently
discovered with the NEAT 1.2-m Schmidt telescope at Palomar on Dec.
14.4 and reported then to be cometary
(with a faint short tail toward the east-southeast) by K. J.
Lawrence. Following posting on the NEO Confirmation Page, several
other CCD observers have also noted the object's cometary nature,
including P. Birtwhistle (Great Shefford, Berkshire, England,
0.30-m reflector; on Dec. 14.9, from co-added images totaling 15
min exposure, diffuse coma of diameter 10", extended in p.a. about
260 deg, surrounding a central condensation of mag 19.4; on Dec.
15.9, 8" coma and 45" tail in p.a. 255 deg), J. E. McGaha (Tucson,
AZ, 0.36-m reflector; on Dec. 16.3, three co-added 1-min frames
show a small starlike condensation with a 8" coma), J. Young (Table
Mountain, CA, 0.6-m reflector; on Dec. 17.3, 3" asymmetric coma
with a hint of tail about 12" long in p.a. 250-260 deg), and R.
Fredrick and R. Trentman (Louisburg, KS, 0.75-m reflector; on Dec.
17.4, broad fan-shaped tail 20" long in p.a. 240 deg).
[IAUC 8257, 2003 December 17]

A/2003 XM (LINEAR)
is an asteroid, of 19th magnitude, discovered by LINEAR
on 2003 December 3.33. It is in a 5.4 year orbit,
with perihelion at 0.99 AU
and an eccentricity of 0.68. It reaches perihelion in early February 2004.
[MPEC 2003-X26, 2003 December 4, 1-day orbit] The orbit is typical of a Jupiter
family comet, and it can approach Jupiter to within 0.1 AU, approaching this
distance in 1974. It is also a PHA, approaching to 0.012 AU of the Earth at
the descending node.
2003 YM159 (P/LINEAR-Hill) = 2004 V5
The Catalina Sky Survey reported the observation of two cometary objects on frames
taken on November 10.5. These were linked to an asteroidal object detected by
LINEAR in October, and then to an asteroid found by LINEAR last December. The
brighter of the two cometary objects links to the asteroid and is the primary component.
The orbit is elliptical with a period of 22.4 years and perihelion at 4.4 AU in February 2005.
Peter Birtwistle gives further information
on the discovery.

The Catalina Sky Survey has reported observations of two
short-tailed comet suspects on four CCD frames obtained over a
39-min span on Nov. 10.5 UT (observer R. Hill; 0.68-m Schmidt
telescope). The head of the slightly fainter of the two was
situated about 102" west and 33" north of that of the brighter and
close to end of the latter's tail. Assuming that the two orbits
differed only in T, B. G. Marsden, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for
Astrophysics, found that the objects -- if real -- had to be
intermediate-period comets some 4.3-4.4 AU from the earth. The
assumption also revealed likely LINEAR observations of a single
asteroidal object on Oct. 8 and 24, and a three-night linkage then
showed identity with the LINEAR asteroidal object 2003 YM_159,
observed on 2003 Dec. 17 and 30 (see MPS 109905) -- the identity
clearly being with the brighter 2004 Nov. 10 object, now designated
component A. T for component B
will occur about 0.23 day later than for component A.
[IAUC 8433, 2004 November 10]

The comet was originally named LINEAR-Catalina, however
Brian Marsden notes on MPEC 2004-V79

Consultation with the IAU Committee on Small-Body Nomenclature has
yielded the decision to introduce for this comet (cf. IAUC 8433, MPEC 2004-V52)
the new principal designation P/2004 V5 and to replace the name LINEAR-
Catalina with LINEAR-Hill. The components A and B are defined as before,
although the opportunity has also been taken to reprint here the previously
tabulated Nov. 10.5 observations with their new coded designations. The
orbital elements and ephemeris refer to component A. Component B will pass
perihelion 0.23 day after component A.

While the initial report inferred that the discovery
of comet P/2003 YM_159 at Catalina was a team discovery
(thus the name 'LINEAR-Catalina' given on IAUC 8433),
it has since been determined that observer Rik Hill was alone
in discovering, measuring, and reporting the comet -- thereby
allowing his name to be used in place of the survey name (as
also approved by the Catalina team). Consultation with the IAU
Committee on Small-Body Nomenclature has yielded the decision to
introduce for this comet the new principal designation P/2004 V5
and to replace the name 'LINEAR-Catalina' with 'LINEAR-Hill'.
The components A and B are defined as before. The following
improved orbital elements from MPEC 2004-V79 are for component A, with the
preliminary elements for component B being well satisfied with
the same elements but with Delta(T) = +0.23 day.
[IAUC 8438, 2004 November 15]